References:
- Psalm 37:1-10 NAS
- Mark 5:1-20 NAS
- Luke 10:38-42 NAS
The other night I was at the regular Wednesday night Bible Study. I and my co-teacher were ready to teach. But, the few people that usually attend the Gospel of John study that we do were not there. So, we decided to attend another group that was studying Romans. I was expecting a really good discussion. I ended up being a bit disappointed.
The man who was leading the Bible Study started things off with having a couple of volunteers come up and share their personal testimonies. If you are unfamiliar with what that is, a 'personal testimony' is when a person shares how God has changed a his or her life. In some Christian circles, the can mean any time that God has done something to significantly impact how a person lives, how they view life, how they relate to others, etc. This can be something really big, like a 'Road to Damascus' experience. Or, it could be something small, like reading a familiar Scripture passage and God points something new out to you. For others, it either means a 'Road to Damascus' experience (aka 'conversion experience') or God doing something major in your life. Like deliverance from drugs, bring someone out of a self-destructive lifestyle, or something else that is “incredible.” Personally, I fall into the first group.
After the volunteers talked about how they had 'come to know Christ,' the Bible Study leader had us read the Mark 5 passage noted above. His emphasis was how Jesus directed the person that He had delivered from demonic possession to not stay with Him, but to tell his friends and family all that God had done. He then tied this in to how we need to be willing to share our 'personal testimony' with others and to encourage people to 'make a decision for Christ.' This did not make me real comfortable for a number of reasons. The primary one being that sometimes it is more important to 'be Christ' to others instead of just 'telling them about Him.' So, I shared how God has used me on many occasions to help those who were burdened with something. In some of those conversations, I shared what God has done in my life. However, in many of them, I simply listened and empathized with what they were feeling. That is, I listened to how a situation had impacted their lives and tried to understand how that made them feel.
Though I did more of a 'story telling' instead of summarizing, I was hoping that I got my point across. While it is always important to be able to share with others what we believe as Christians and the hope that Christ gives us, sometimes that is not what is most important. I could be wrong, but it seemed that the person leading the study didn't really like my observation. He acknowledged it, but seemed to be very dismissive of it. It could be he was so focused on what he was wanting to teach that he wanted to get back on track. I don't know.
I do know that some Christian denominations have a very, very strong emphasis on 'soul harvesting.' That is, the members of some denominations focus their energies on going out into their communities, telling other people about how God has changed their lives, and to encourage people to 'make a decision' on becoming a Christian. Although I do believe that sharing your testimony is important, and that there will come a time when each of us have to 'make a decision (for follow Christ),' I do not believe that should be the main emphasis.
I also know of some denominations that focus so much on 'social justice' and reaching out to people that they leave out how God came into this world as Jesus to save us from our sins. They focus on serving and helping others, but at the expense of telling others about the life changing message of Jesus Christ. People are helped, but not changed.
I believe that both have to be done. We need to do both, 'be the Gospel' to others and to 'share the Gospel' with others. But, before we can effectively do either, we have to know who God is, we need to be deeply changed by Jesus. That is why I included the other two Scripture passages. We need to spend time studying God's Word on our own, attending worship services where we can be challenged to grow in our faith, and spend time with fellow Christians to encourage each other in our spiritual growth. We need to purposely take time and 'be still,' as the Psalms passage emphasizes. Just like we cannot hear what a friend or co-worker says to us if we are not paying attention, we can't hear God speak to us if we do not take time to be still and listen.
As the Luke passage points out, there are times when we allow ourselves to become too busy with things in life. Martha was so focused on taking care of all the food and other hosting requirements that she was missing out on actually being nourished on what Jesus had to say. Mary, on the other hand, was being still and soaking it all up. When Martha became upset about it, Jesus corrected her. Though it is important to do things and help others, we also need to 'just be still' like Mary was doing.
I have been a follower of Christ since early 1994. There have been seasons in my life where things have been joyful and fun, and seasons where I have struggled with staying positive, doing the right thing, etc. During those times of difficulty, God has always ministered to me. Sometimes it was while having my 'quiet time.' But, many times it has been because God used someone to walk with me during my times of difficulty and shared the burdens that I had.
In my many years of walking with Christ, I have found that God most often uses me to be His presence in another person's life. Not sharing how God has turned my life around and/or up-side-down. Not the need to face the fact that all of us are sinners and are in desperate need to find salvation in Christ alone. Not the 'you have to make a decision.' No… I find that God most often uses me to listen to what is going on in a person's life and to walk with them. So many people have been turned off by the 'in your face' of some people that, if you start telling them about God, they will immediate start shutting down. In that case, no matter how eloquent of a speaker you might be, they will not hear you.
I have found that, most of the time, people are wanting a physical person to help them with what is bothering them. To most people, God is a foreign concept, or something that they have grown to hate because of one reason or another. For them to be able to know that God really does love them and wants to redeem them from their life of sin, we have to be there for them. We have to be willing to listen to them share their ugliness, their pain, their questions. And there will be times where it may take months, even years of listening and loving someone before they will be willing to really listen to you about how God has changed your life.
It really boils down to 'walking the walk' before we 'talk the talk.' If we do not allow God to show His love through us in our actions, then all of our knowledge of Scripture and eloquent speech will be for nothing. If people do not see Christ in our lives, they won't believe what we say about Him. As His ambassadors to this world, we have to intimately know who He is and allow Him to deeply impact our lives. If we do not allow God to change us, we will still resemble this world. If we are not changed ourselves, how can we expect others to want to know Christ?
It is never easy to “walk the walk.” Change can be difficult. But yet, if we genuinely seek God's help in changing, He will do so. It may be painful at times, but God will help us get through it and be better followers. Are we willing to do so?
Showing posts with label ambassador. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ambassador. Show all posts
Saturday, November 7, 2015
Saturday, October 17, 2015
An Amish Murder Critique
References:
- An Amish Murder
- 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 NAS
The other day, I watched a very interesting movie on Netflix called, "An Amish Murder." In a nutshell, a young lady grows up in the Amish community, a traumatic event happens in her life, and she leaves the Amish community to pursue a career in Law Enforcement. Years later, after making detective, she returns to a small town in Ohio near where she grew up as the police chief. While she is home, a series of murders take place. These murders are eerily like the ones that were committed when she was growing up.
One of the reasons why I enjoyed the movie was because it was a very good thriller. Throughout the movie, one thinks that the serial killer might be one person. Then, maybe someone else. The end is a bit of a surprise. I always enjoy movies like that because it challenges me to be observant of the facts. Most thriller movies like this one will have the clues needed to make the right connection at the end. It's just that many of them are very subtle. At least for me, it's a fun game to see if I can guess correctly. With this movie, I have to admit, I almost didn't catch on to who the real culprit was until near the end.
Having been a military analyst and currently being a MP (Military Policeman), I enjoy a good crime thriller at times. It was also good in that two of the main characters were wrestling with different traumatic events in their lives. Different but similar enough that they were able to relate and help each other. At least to me, that gave it a more interesting and human twist. How many of us have experienced major difficulties, even a traumatic event, and then the growth and healing that we experienced was then used to help someone else? I know that God has used difficulties that I've experience to be a blessing to others. There has also been times where God used lessons that I learned while not dealing with a situation well to help someone else facing a similar situation. Although it was extremely painful to deal with at the time, seeing how God has helped others always gives me a good feeling.
Something else that I really appreciated about this movie was the theme of being an ambassador between two very different cultures. As I have mentioned several other times in my blog, I have had the opportunity to interact with people from all over the world. Most of my experiences have been in Europe and Iraq. But, I have gotten to know people from many other cultures, too. There have been times when I did not represent myself well to others. We all do that. Over the years, I have made it a point to learn from my mistakes and to better understand the cultural background of others.
Because of the lessons that I have learned over the years, I am typically able to interact with those from a foreign country. This is not always easy. There are things that some cultures do on a daily basis (or don't do) that many Americans find offensive. An example that comes to my mind has to do with deodorant. I had several friends in seminary who were from Africa. Both of these men had good hygiene habits, but neither of them used deodorant. Because of this, they both had bo (body odor). In my conversations with fellow students, I found out that many of them found this annoying or even extremely aggravating. I'm not sure if any of them talked with these two individuals or not. But, they were definitely vocal about it to fellow students.
Although I wasn't happy about their bo, I did understand that in their home country, deodorant wasn't often used. So I accepted them as they were. Something interesting, though, was that I noticed that both men had a unique scent. This made for a few amusing situations when one of them approached me and I was able to correctly identify who it was without looking.
When I was working in Iraq in 2010-11, I was interacting with people from all over the world. Not just Iraqi government officials and Iraqi military personnel, but business people from Iraq and many countries all over the world. Each of them had their own cultures. I was able to do my job well because I strove to treat each person that came into my office with respect as a person and to their native culture. This enabled me to not only get my job done effectively, but it also helped to foster positive relationships between the US Army and those who did business or worked for other governments. Several people were so touched by how I did my best to respect their cultures that they asked to work with me or even gave me unique gifts from their business or embassy.
To touch on the Scripture passage from 2nd Corinthians, that is what God calls us to do to everyone around us. God calls each of us to be His representative to others in this world. The Greek word that Paul uses in Galatians 6:20 and the 2nd Corinthians passage is προσβευο (pres-byoo'-o), which means: 1. to be older, prior by birth or in age, or 2. to be an ambassador, act as an ambassador. It is used only twice in the New Testament, with both being the second definition. But, how can we do this?
An ambassador must be highly knowledgeable of two different cultures and (often times also languages). Of course, he has to fully understand his native culture and language. That is a given. But, the ambassador must also be highly knowledgeable of the culture and language of the country that he is living in. He or she must understand both extremely well so that they can effectively translate what his or her native country wants to something that the host country can understand. And, since some things that are acceptable in country may be extremely offensive in another one, he or she needs to keep this in mind as they work with their host country in understanding what their native country wants.
When we become a Christian, our new residency is now in Heaven with God, though we still live in this world. As we grow as a Christian, we need to learn as much as we can about who God is and what He expects of us and Followers of Christ. As we learn more about our adopted homeland (Heaven) God expects us to tell others of this world about Him. To do so, we have to understand the language and culture that we live in. That is often a given, having grown up in a particular state or town and, now as a Christian, teaching others about Christ. However, God often guides us to someplace new. When this happens, we have to learn about the new culture, traditions, and language. Because of regional slang being different throughout any country, there are things that one always has to learn that are unique to that area.
Each of us has become a Christian because God used someone to introduce us to Christ. God has also used many people and circumstances in our lives to teach us more about Him. Some people sought to purposely direct us towards Christ. Others sought to do evil to us, but God used the circumstances to bring about His good will. As followers of Christ, God expects us to direct others to Him. He wants us to be His ambassadors to this fallen world so that others can receive His salvation. That requires us to not only understand His Word (the Bible), but to understand those with whom we interact with, as well as seek to teach others about God. All of this requires time and effort.
I have seen all to often people visiting a foreign country and, either because they lacked interest in learning about another culture or arrogance that their culture was superior, they caused friction, ill will, or even caused severe problems. And, that particular person or group of people may not have suffered the consequences of their laziness or arrogance, but someone who was totally innocent of the previous event. There have been a few times during my travels that people have not wanted to be respectful towards me because of what others have done. Sometimes my actions and attitude help them change their minds towards Americans or towards Christians. But, that isn't always the case. Should we not strive to be the best representative of God to the world? Should we not live in such a way that others will want to know Christ as we have come to know Him?
- An Amish Murder
- 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 NAS
The other day, I watched a very interesting movie on Netflix called, "An Amish Murder." In a nutshell, a young lady grows up in the Amish community, a traumatic event happens in her life, and she leaves the Amish community to pursue a career in Law Enforcement. Years later, after making detective, she returns to a small town in Ohio near where she grew up as the police chief. While she is home, a series of murders take place. These murders are eerily like the ones that were committed when she was growing up.
One of the reasons why I enjoyed the movie was because it was a very good thriller. Throughout the movie, one thinks that the serial killer might be one person. Then, maybe someone else. The end is a bit of a surprise. I always enjoy movies like that because it challenges me to be observant of the facts. Most thriller movies like this one will have the clues needed to make the right connection at the end. It's just that many of them are very subtle. At least for me, it's a fun game to see if I can guess correctly. With this movie, I have to admit, I almost didn't catch on to who the real culprit was until near the end.
Having been a military analyst and currently being a MP (Military Policeman), I enjoy a good crime thriller at times. It was also good in that two of the main characters were wrestling with different traumatic events in their lives. Different but similar enough that they were able to relate and help each other. At least to me, that gave it a more interesting and human twist. How many of us have experienced major difficulties, even a traumatic event, and then the growth and healing that we experienced was then used to help someone else? I know that God has used difficulties that I've experience to be a blessing to others. There has also been times where God used lessons that I learned while not dealing with a situation well to help someone else facing a similar situation. Although it was extremely painful to deal with at the time, seeing how God has helped others always gives me a good feeling.
Something else that I really appreciated about this movie was the theme of being an ambassador between two very different cultures. As I have mentioned several other times in my blog, I have had the opportunity to interact with people from all over the world. Most of my experiences have been in Europe and Iraq. But, I have gotten to know people from many other cultures, too. There have been times when I did not represent myself well to others. We all do that. Over the years, I have made it a point to learn from my mistakes and to better understand the cultural background of others.
Because of the lessons that I have learned over the years, I am typically able to interact with those from a foreign country. This is not always easy. There are things that some cultures do on a daily basis (or don't do) that many Americans find offensive. An example that comes to my mind has to do with deodorant. I had several friends in seminary who were from Africa. Both of these men had good hygiene habits, but neither of them used deodorant. Because of this, they both had bo (body odor). In my conversations with fellow students, I found out that many of them found this annoying or even extremely aggravating. I'm not sure if any of them talked with these two individuals or not. But, they were definitely vocal about it to fellow students.
Although I wasn't happy about their bo, I did understand that in their home country, deodorant wasn't often used. So I accepted them as they were. Something interesting, though, was that I noticed that both men had a unique scent. This made for a few amusing situations when one of them approached me and I was able to correctly identify who it was without looking.
When I was working in Iraq in 2010-11, I was interacting with people from all over the world. Not just Iraqi government officials and Iraqi military personnel, but business people from Iraq and many countries all over the world. Each of them had their own cultures. I was able to do my job well because I strove to treat each person that came into my office with respect as a person and to their native culture. This enabled me to not only get my job done effectively, but it also helped to foster positive relationships between the US Army and those who did business or worked for other governments. Several people were so touched by how I did my best to respect their cultures that they asked to work with me or even gave me unique gifts from their business or embassy.
To touch on the Scripture passage from 2nd Corinthians, that is what God calls us to do to everyone around us. God calls each of us to be His representative to others in this world. The Greek word that Paul uses in Galatians 6:20 and the 2nd Corinthians passage is προσβευο (pres-byoo'-o), which means: 1. to be older, prior by birth or in age, or 2. to be an ambassador, act as an ambassador. It is used only twice in the New Testament, with both being the second definition. But, how can we do this?
An ambassador must be highly knowledgeable of two different cultures and (often times also languages). Of course, he has to fully understand his native culture and language. That is a given. But, the ambassador must also be highly knowledgeable of the culture and language of the country that he is living in. He or she must understand both extremely well so that they can effectively translate what his or her native country wants to something that the host country can understand. And, since some things that are acceptable in country may be extremely offensive in another one, he or she needs to keep this in mind as they work with their host country in understanding what their native country wants.
When we become a Christian, our new residency is now in Heaven with God, though we still live in this world. As we grow as a Christian, we need to learn as much as we can about who God is and what He expects of us and Followers of Christ. As we learn more about our adopted homeland (Heaven) God expects us to tell others of this world about Him. To do so, we have to understand the language and culture that we live in. That is often a given, having grown up in a particular state or town and, now as a Christian, teaching others about Christ. However, God often guides us to someplace new. When this happens, we have to learn about the new culture, traditions, and language. Because of regional slang being different throughout any country, there are things that one always has to learn that are unique to that area.
Each of us has become a Christian because God used someone to introduce us to Christ. God has also used many people and circumstances in our lives to teach us more about Him. Some people sought to purposely direct us towards Christ. Others sought to do evil to us, but God used the circumstances to bring about His good will. As followers of Christ, God expects us to direct others to Him. He wants us to be His ambassadors to this fallen world so that others can receive His salvation. That requires us to not only understand His Word (the Bible), but to understand those with whom we interact with, as well as seek to teach others about God. All of this requires time and effort.
I have seen all to often people visiting a foreign country and, either because they lacked interest in learning about another culture or arrogance that their culture was superior, they caused friction, ill will, or even caused severe problems. And, that particular person or group of people may not have suffered the consequences of their laziness or arrogance, but someone who was totally innocent of the previous event. There have been a few times during my travels that people have not wanted to be respectful towards me because of what others have done. Sometimes my actions and attitude help them change their minds towards Americans or towards Christians. But, that isn't always the case. Should we not strive to be the best representative of God to the world? Should we not live in such a way that others will want to know Christ as we have come to know Him?
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Being an Inspiration
A while back, I wrote a blog entry about how God uses us to touch the lives of others (Touching Lives). Although I felt that I was done with that particular blog entry, I felt like God wanted me to do more. After some reflection and prayer, now I will develop that concept a little bit more. Before going further, please take a moment to read 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 and Matthew 28:18-20. There are many other passages that are applicable, but these are the two that I will use.
Has anyone come up to you and said that you are their hero? Or, that you have been an inspiration to them in some part of their life? That has happened to me on quite a few occasions. And, some of them have caught me by complete surprise.
While growing up, I was often reminded by my Dad, a Presbyterian Pastor, that the younger kids are watching me. Not just that, but that I will be a role-model to them with how to act and talk. Because of this, I need to be ‘more mindful’ of what I did and how I said things. I don’t think I really took this to heart until I was a senior in high school in Kentucky.
During my senior year, a group of seniors went around and took pictures and videos of other seniors. These pictures and videos would be put together for the seniors as part of a graduation gift from the school. Of course, there were specific rules that we had to abide by. What was neat was that they asked the students different questions in order to make it more personal. A few weeks before graduation, we got to watch the video. I will never forget it! One of the guys was asked on the video, “So tell us… Who is your hero.” His immediate response was that I was his hero! I just remember sitting there stunned, that someone would think of me as their inspiration. Honestly, I can't remember why I was his hero. Since the interview was only a few minutes long, I doubt he probably elaborated.
Over the years, I have been blessed on many other occasions where I have inspired others. For me, hearing how I have been a blessing to others is God’s way of encouraging me. He also reminds me of how He often uses me without me perceiving it. Even in small things, God has shown me how that He has touched others through what I say and do.
Another example… For those that don't know me, I am not a fast runner. For most of my military career, I have struggled with passing my 2 miles run within the allowed time. While I was Active Duty at FT Bragg, a friend of mine was the coach for the unit’s 10 Run Team. This was for the up-coming All American Week (think intramural sports being played by a whole base). He invited me to be on his team. Most of the other guys in my company questioned his logic in doing so. Since we had at least 8 runners and only the first 5 who finished would be counted, I was there more for the benefit of training with them. And, my friend inspired me to do my best by training with me. I know that it was often hard for him to run at my slower pace. But, he was that serious about me being on the team and personally helped me to improve.
As I trained, I shared with friends and family that I was participating on the 10 Mile Run Team. This was something I did on a regular basis, sharing important things in my life with those who are important to me. A few months later, while I was on vacation, I visited a good friend of mine from seminary and his family. At the time, he was pastoring a church in Kansas. While I was hanging out with him and ‘shooting the breeze,’ he told me that I had inspired him to start running and to get back into shape. At that point, he had lost several pounds, was dealing with stress better, and many other things. He also shared that, because I was several years older and took up the challenge to push myself in something I struggled to do well, what excuse did he have?
It is the same thing with my family. As a father of two kids, I often see them imitating the things that I do. At times that makes me proud, because they are mimicking the good things that I do. Other times, watching what they do makes me cringe. Through their actions and words, I realize how many times they see me making mistakes. It’s an important reminder to me, no matter what they are doing, to make sure that I am being the best role-model for them. Quite honestly, how my kids act is a daily reminder that they are closely watching how my wife and I deal with life.
Lets think about this a bit. How many people do you interact with on a daily basis? If you go to school, you have your classmates and teachers or professors. If you work, you have co-workers and supervisors. There are also various friends and family members that each of us interacts with regularly. Lets face it… We come into contact with many different people while we are out shopping, commuting to and from work or school, etc. Though we may not always be an inspiration to someone that we briefly interact with, that is not always the case.
I could be out with my family at a restaurant and, because someone is having a bad day, they decide to direct their anger towards me. In this case, lets say that I was able to use my ministerial skills to deescalate the situation. As we talked, I showed him that I cared by listening to what he was saying and that I acknowledged how it made him feel. In response, instead of taking his anger out on me or someone else, he is able to get a better perspective on things.
However, unknown to me there is a person who grew up without good parenting or role-models. All he or she knew growing up is how to react to things, especially with anger. Now the person sees how I used my verbal skills to help someone who was very upset to take a step back and gain a better perspective. This could be the inspiration that he or she needs to seek help in making positive changes in his or her life.
We all need to remember that others are watching what we say and do. It is so very easy to walk around, living life our own way, and not think about how we are impacting others. But yet, we always are influencing others with how we talk, how we act, our mannerism, etc. As followers of Christ, we are all His ambassadors to this world. (2 Corinthians 5:20) It is not something we can choose to do or not to do. If we claim to be a follower of Christ, we are, in fact, His ambassador.
Paul writes in his second Epistle to the churches in Corinth concerning many things. In this particular chapter, he talks specifically about being reconciled to Christ (born again as some define it). That is, trusting Christ as one’s Lord and Savior. In doing so, we become an adopted member of God’s family through Christ’s death and resurrection. But, being a member of the Body of Christ doesn’t just end with our adoption. As a follower of Christ, we now represent Him to those around us. Paul exhorts us, therefore, to be positive role-models or ambassadors for Christ to those around us. Not that we will get it right all the time. But, by God’s grace, we can learn and grow. And, as we learn and grow, we can more positively impact those around us.
We impact the lives of those around us, whether we know it or not. In fact, we can be a source of inspiration to others. There are many competing voices for peoples’ loyalty and devotion. On a daily basis, children are enticed to join gangs so that they can have a ‘family.’ On a daily basis terrorist groups try to persuade those who are angry about life to join their cause. On a daily basis, there are people who have corrupt morals that seek to encourage others to follow their examples. Let us seek God’s help to also be a voice to others. Let us seek God’s help in being positive influence in people’s lives. Not just that, let us ask God to change us in such was as we inspire others to follow Him. And not just follow Him, but seek to be obedient to Him in thought, word and deed. If prayerfully do that on a day-to-day basis, imagine the kind of impact God could have on the lives of those around us!
Has anyone come up to you and said that you are their hero? Or, that you have been an inspiration to them in some part of their life? That has happened to me on quite a few occasions. And, some of them have caught me by complete surprise.
While growing up, I was often reminded by my Dad, a Presbyterian Pastor, that the younger kids are watching me. Not just that, but that I will be a role-model to them with how to act and talk. Because of this, I need to be ‘more mindful’ of what I did and how I said things. I don’t think I really took this to heart until I was a senior in high school in Kentucky.
During my senior year, a group of seniors went around and took pictures and videos of other seniors. These pictures and videos would be put together for the seniors as part of a graduation gift from the school. Of course, there were specific rules that we had to abide by. What was neat was that they asked the students different questions in order to make it more personal. A few weeks before graduation, we got to watch the video. I will never forget it! One of the guys was asked on the video, “So tell us… Who is your hero.” His immediate response was that I was his hero! I just remember sitting there stunned, that someone would think of me as their inspiration. Honestly, I can't remember why I was his hero. Since the interview was only a few minutes long, I doubt he probably elaborated.
Over the years, I have been blessed on many other occasions where I have inspired others. For me, hearing how I have been a blessing to others is God’s way of encouraging me. He also reminds me of how He often uses me without me perceiving it. Even in small things, God has shown me how that He has touched others through what I say and do.
Another example… For those that don't know me, I am not a fast runner. For most of my military career, I have struggled with passing my 2 miles run within the allowed time. While I was Active Duty at FT Bragg, a friend of mine was the coach for the unit’s 10 Run Team. This was for the up-coming All American Week (think intramural sports being played by a whole base). He invited me to be on his team. Most of the other guys in my company questioned his logic in doing so. Since we had at least 8 runners and only the first 5 who finished would be counted, I was there more for the benefit of training with them. And, my friend inspired me to do my best by training with me. I know that it was often hard for him to run at my slower pace. But, he was that serious about me being on the team and personally helped me to improve.
As I trained, I shared with friends and family that I was participating on the 10 Mile Run Team. This was something I did on a regular basis, sharing important things in my life with those who are important to me. A few months later, while I was on vacation, I visited a good friend of mine from seminary and his family. At the time, he was pastoring a church in Kansas. While I was hanging out with him and ‘shooting the breeze,’ he told me that I had inspired him to start running and to get back into shape. At that point, he had lost several pounds, was dealing with stress better, and many other things. He also shared that, because I was several years older and took up the challenge to push myself in something I struggled to do well, what excuse did he have?
It is the same thing with my family. As a father of two kids, I often see them imitating the things that I do. At times that makes me proud, because they are mimicking the good things that I do. Other times, watching what they do makes me cringe. Through their actions and words, I realize how many times they see me making mistakes. It’s an important reminder to me, no matter what they are doing, to make sure that I am being the best role-model for them. Quite honestly, how my kids act is a daily reminder that they are closely watching how my wife and I deal with life.
Lets think about this a bit. How many people do you interact with on a daily basis? If you go to school, you have your classmates and teachers or professors. If you work, you have co-workers and supervisors. There are also various friends and family members that each of us interacts with regularly. Lets face it… We come into contact with many different people while we are out shopping, commuting to and from work or school, etc. Though we may not always be an inspiration to someone that we briefly interact with, that is not always the case.
I could be out with my family at a restaurant and, because someone is having a bad day, they decide to direct their anger towards me. In this case, lets say that I was able to use my ministerial skills to deescalate the situation. As we talked, I showed him that I cared by listening to what he was saying and that I acknowledged how it made him feel. In response, instead of taking his anger out on me or someone else, he is able to get a better perspective on things.
However, unknown to me there is a person who grew up without good parenting or role-models. All he or she knew growing up is how to react to things, especially with anger. Now the person sees how I used my verbal skills to help someone who was very upset to take a step back and gain a better perspective. This could be the inspiration that he or she needs to seek help in making positive changes in his or her life.
We all need to remember that others are watching what we say and do. It is so very easy to walk around, living life our own way, and not think about how we are impacting others. But yet, we always are influencing others with how we talk, how we act, our mannerism, etc. As followers of Christ, we are all His ambassadors to this world. (2 Corinthians 5:20) It is not something we can choose to do or not to do. If we claim to be a follower of Christ, we are, in fact, His ambassador.
Paul writes in his second Epistle to the churches in Corinth concerning many things. In this particular chapter, he talks specifically about being reconciled to Christ (born again as some define it). That is, trusting Christ as one’s Lord and Savior. In doing so, we become an adopted member of God’s family through Christ’s death and resurrection. But, being a member of the Body of Christ doesn’t just end with our adoption. As a follower of Christ, we now represent Him to those around us. Paul exhorts us, therefore, to be positive role-models or ambassadors for Christ to those around us. Not that we will get it right all the time. But, by God’s grace, we can learn and grow. And, as we learn and grow, we can more positively impact those around us.
We impact the lives of those around us, whether we know it or not. In fact, we can be a source of inspiration to others. There are many competing voices for peoples’ loyalty and devotion. On a daily basis, children are enticed to join gangs so that they can have a ‘family.’ On a daily basis terrorist groups try to persuade those who are angry about life to join their cause. On a daily basis, there are people who have corrupt morals that seek to encourage others to follow their examples. Let us seek God’s help to also be a voice to others. Let us seek God’s help in being positive influence in people’s lives. Not just that, let us ask God to change us in such was as we inspire others to follow Him. And not just follow Him, but seek to be obedient to Him in thought, word and deed. If prayerfully do that on a day-to-day basis, imagine the kind of impact God could have on the lives of those around us!
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